


Minor Fall, Major Lift

by LinnyBear



Series: Tales of Vox Rockina [1]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Buckle Up My Friends, Critical Role Minibang, Gen, Modern AU, Vox Rockina, father daughter bonding, listen this is likely going to become a series so, scanlan is a producer au, through Too Many Emotions because how else would they do it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-24
Updated: 2016-11-24
Packaged: 2018-09-01 20:30:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8637070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LinnyBear/pseuds/LinnyBear
Summary: Famous rock star-turned-music producer Scanlan Shorthalt is a new parent of a 16 year old girl, who he can't seem to get to open up. Or stop hating him. He has two options: Try and convince her that he's willing to make up for the past, or turn her over to his wonderful, horrible, irresponsible friends.
Written for the Critical Role reverse bang on tumblr.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Critical Role Minibang on tumblr, inspired by this fantastic piece here! (which i forgot to link in the initial posting of this wow)  
> http://hawkeabelas(.)tumblr(.)com/post/153604485247/art-by-the-fantastic-marshmallowmoth-minor-fall

Scanlan taps his fingers impatiently on the arm of the couch. "It's just - It's been over a month, and I don't know. I just think she's not happy here." 

"A month isn't that long, Scanlan." Vex sips her coffee, and shrugs. "And I mean, she went through a lot before she got here, right? Losing her mother, finding out her father is actually alive and, like, super rich, and if you'd known about her she probably wouldn't have grown up too poor to eat sometimes?" Vex doesn't have to remind him that she knows a thing or two about that. It's one reason why Scanlan is glad he talked to her. Also, he feels slightly guilty about that - about all of it, about having a starving daughter he never knew - but he ignores it. For now.

"Yes, alright, you're right." He sighs, long and drawn out. "But... I still want to find a way to make her happy here. Make her feel safe. Like... " 

"Like her world isn't going to get yanked out from under her?" Vex sighs, and sets her empty cup on the coffee table. "Knowing you, I'm guessing you've already told her. In a million, completely unnecessarily poetic and obnoxious ways." 

He just glares. "Yes, of course. And sincerely, too, before you say anything." He ignores the eye roll she gives him. "Really! I've told her she's welcome here as long as she wants. I've made sure she has everything she needs, and she hasn't asked for a thing but I'd give her that too, I've - Shit. I don't know what to do, Vex."

Vex nods along. Then taps her chin a few times and gives a very.   _ Dangerous _ .  Smile. 

"Then it's our turn." 

"’Our’, as in - "

"All of us. The band. Your wonderful, most favorite best friends. She isn't sure she wants a dad yet? Give her to some irresponsible aunts and uncles." 

"And what will that accomplish, exactly?" But he's already decided that it's a better idea than he's ever come up with. 

"We'll just make her love us more so you're even more of an asshole deadbeat in comparison." 

He fixes her with another glare.

" _ Kidding _ . I don't know. Might be good for her to get to know someone who loves you. And let her spend some time with adults who aren't her dad, her teachers, or her social worker. Plus, we're a fucking awesome rock band. What teenager doesn't want a day with a fucking awesome rock band."

She’s right, but he’s not about to say that out  _ loud.  _ “And if she comes back begging for you to adopt her instead?”

“Just collateral damage, darling.” She waves it off. “Really. She plays too, right? Flute? She might think it’s cool to see professional music from the inside. And you don’t have to worry about her running off to buy drugs while you’re at work.” 

“Why would- “ 

“Kidding, again, wow Scanlan calm down. Give us a chance.”

Against his better judgment, he agrees.

 

"So... You want me to spend my saturday. At your job." Kaylie finally looks up from her homework at that. 

"You can say no, if you want." He shrugs, flipping two seasoned chicken thighs over. "My friends wanted to get to know you. And they thought you might enjoy spending time with their band - Vox Machina? Maybe you've heard of them?" He grins, but she just looks confused.

"Should I have? Are they one of those weird metal bands?" 

"Well... No. Although Percy  _ did _ try and suggest it - Alt-rock, still up and coming, did a pretty great tour last summer, with a couple guest spots on - you know what, I'll let you find out for yourself." 

She gives a noncommittal grunt. He tries to hide how happy he is that this is the most amicable conversation they've had. 

"So... You keep saying ‘they’. Aren't you some sort of famous rock star too?" There’s a bit of bitterness in the way she says it, which briefly throws him back to he and Vex’s conversation.

He pours a bit more sauce on the pan, and it produces a cloud of steam around him. "I was. But that was years ago. Now I produce. More stable, less drugs involved. Usually. Except - don’t do drugs. Ever." He adds, quickly. She snorts. It’s almost a laugh, probably.

They fall into silence after that, nothing but the sound of her pencil scratching paper, and the food sizzling on the stove.

When she talks, it's almost too quiet for him to hear. "Do you remember my mother?"

And it sounds just so...  _ cold _ , it shocks him. "What?" 

"Do you even remember her? Or was she just some random groupie to you?" 

He stammers - where is this even coming from? - and turns to meet her eyes. 

"Of course I remember Sybil." Whose name he read from the paperwork Mrs. Vysoren had given him. He doesn't mention that. Nor does he mention that the name had brought back only scant details of the woman - nights after a music festival with a blonde gnome who practically begged him to taker her along on tour, whose heart he'd likely broken when he hopped on that tour bus without her, and without even leaving a goodbye. "Look it's been years, and - and well, I was a very different man back then, but I  _ do _ remember her I promise."

"Sure you do." She's not working on her homework so much as trying to glare a hole in it. "You know I'm not really hungry tonight. I should get this done in quiet. Goodnight."

She gathers her books and leaves before he can ask her not to. 

He still puts her food in the fridge, with a note on the door telling her where to find it. And although he should have done it before, he heads up to the attic, to start digging through old band photos from his time at Kymal music festival.

 

He's up before her the next morning. Which annoys her for some reason, but everything does. He allows her to pour her cereal and her coffee, and sit down at the table, before he slides an old drug store photo counter envelope to her.

She fixes him with an odd look at first, before pulling out the first of the photos - him and Dranzel, on stage, sweaty and playing one of the best shows he can remember. "...Yeah I get it, you were in a band once, you're so cool." 

"Just look through them." 

And she does, face relatively neutral for the first few, until - 

"Wait, is this - "

"Your mother. She was there with some friends, and caught me backstage after one of our shows. She  _ was _ just going to be another easy l- I mean, groupie. And I’m not proud of that, and how frequently that happened. But, we hit it off. We spent most of that week together." 

He watches her face carefully while she continues to flip through the photos. He'd been lucky to find them, and even luckier, and a little sadder, for the memories they brought back. But he still worries what she'll think of the next part.

"But I was an ass. I had places to be, and she wanted to come with, and I didn't want to be tied down. So, I left, and honestly didn't think about her for long after. Because that's just... I mean it's what I did. It's who I was." 

She's looking at him now, and he can't read her expression. Shit.

"But I'm  _ not _ , anymore. At least, I try not to be. And with you here, I have an even better reason to try. You don't have to like me, and when you're eighteen, I won't keep you around if you don't want to be here. But I promise, I'm here in the meantime. Always. For, whatever." 

A beat. And another. And for half a second, Scanlan wonders if she'll come at him with one of the cutting knives. 

But instead, she makes her way around the table and hugs him. 

The hug is a little awkward, and doesn't last long. And he pretends not to see her wipe a couple tears away after. And tries, probably unsuccessfully, to hide his grin. 

"I have to go to school." She finally says. "I'll be late."

Before she leaves the kitchen, though, she turns back to him. "And I'll meet your stupid friends on Saturday."

Scanlan is singing to himself while he puts his dishes in the sink.

 

Saturday comes, and Scanlan is once again nervous. Things with Kaylie had been - well, not hostile anymore. It was something. And he was leaving her in the care of his, while very talented and personable, incredibly irresponsible and childish friends, which normally he encouraged and fully participated in. However, they were responsible for his daughter for the better part of the afternoon, and suddenly the irresponsible part was a problem.

"Scanlan! You're super late, good job." Vax, who is almost always late, greets them. "And you must be Kaylie." He extends a hand, which she takes. 

"And you're... I’m sorry, who are you?" 

"Oh, come on Scanlan, you didn't tell her about us?" He feigns hurt, dramatically clutching his chest. 

"I did, she just forgot already because you suck." 

"Hey, it's not my studio's money I'm wasting on us." He's grinning though. "I'm Vax. Lady with the clipboard she doesn't even need is my sister and our manager, Vex. Then we've got Percy Keyleth on lead vocals. Emo Von Klossowski - sorry, Percy, again - also plays rhythm guitar. Grog's the giant one on lead guitar, and our dear little Pike there murders the drums."

As Vax points each person out inside the booth, Kaylie nods along.

"So you weren't kidding. Your friends are actually a real band." 

"Why would I be - yes, yes, they are."

"And this is like - an actual recording studio? I've never seen how they work before. Are you recording today? Will I- Can I see?" 

Vax’s grin just grows. “Yep! I mean, most of our sessions are arguing and wasting time but we might get one song done today.”

This is probably the happiest he's seen Kaylie possibly ever, and that alone makes this the best idea Vex has had in her entire life. Scanlan wishes, honestly, that he could stick around and just observe that.

But, he can’t, and he sighs. "I have work to do upstairs, sadly. But you'll be fine here?" 

"Yeah, I think I will." She grins, completely genuinely. 

"Then I'll be back in a few hours."

He leaves, listening to Vax and Kaylie's voices trail off, as he explains some intricacies of studio sound recording. The slight smile doesn’t leave his face all day.

 

She speaks the most he's heard her speak the entire time he's known her. She talks about them of course - she apparently adores them, no surprise, and if Keyleth's gushing texts were any indication, they loved her too. She talks about the music, and it's only now he realizes just how much she loves it, and makes a note to find out how to make sure she can get as involved in as much music and performance as she could possibly want. 

“You know, we could probably make this a sort of regular thing. Hell, I might be able to get you an internship at the studio someday.” It wasn’t nepotism if the whole staff loved her.

“Wait - really? I mean, I don’t know, could I even - “

“You’d be great!” He interrupts, with a grin. “Besides, you have time.”

“Yeah,” She smiles back - real, genuine. “I guess I do.”

She's talking. She's holding a conversation with him. She's not shutting him out. And maybe,  _ maybe,  _ she’s considering staying. Maybe. The next time he's at a long red light, he texts Vex a quick, _ Thank you _ .

Her response is simply,   _ You owe me, darling ;)  _

 

Sunday morning is relatively quiet. They have coffee and eat breakfast on the couch, over some morning show he barely pays attention to. They make light conversation now and then, but otherwise he looks over a lyric he’s writing, and she seems engrossed in her phone. 

"So I talked to Pike yesterday." She sets her phone in her lap, put picks a bit at the hem of her skirt. "Like, a good talk, I think."

"Oh?" Pike was the last person to incriminate him. Right?

"Yeah. I mean, I kinda wanted to figure out a bit more about you, from someone who knows you. Which probably sounds weird but I don't know. It seemed like a good idea." She's not looking at him, and it's a bad sign. 

"They seem to really like you. All of them. Even when they were talking shit about you, they were doing it like… family does. So I was curious. And then Pike said you've been worried about me being happy here, and about being responsible, but that you're trying, and she's never seen you care about something so much, which seems a bit cheesy to me, but ok." She huffs, but looks at him. "So I guess, what I'm trying to say, is I'll - if you don't give up, I'll give this a shot. This whole like... You being my dad. Thing." 

She smiles at him, a little timid, and the look is strange on her face, but - 

"Never. I will never, ever give up on you. I promise." He reaches across the couch to squeeze her hand.

"Good. That's - good." She squeezes his in return. "So. Enough emotions for one day, maybe?" 

"Not quite." 

To her credit, she doesn't resist the hug he pulls her into. Even if she groans about how embarrassing he is into his shoulder.

He'll take it.

**Author's Note:**

> then like 0.2 seconds later he asks what his friends were saying about him exactly but Kaylie has too much fun holding it over him.
> 
> I absolutely plan to write more in this verse. I'm kind of attached to it now. I'm already working on an interlude piece detailing Kaylie's time with Vox Rockina, but that would have likely been another thousand words or more. I have a lot of feelings about Vox Machina telling Kaylie her dad is actually a good person and also Pike/Kaylie bonding and Keyleth basically deciding to adopt Kaylie ok uuuuugh hold me
> 
> Special thanks to my wonderful girlfriend Livvia (Dammit_Hawke) for beta'ing this work. You'd have just read an absolute mess without her.


End file.
